Freshman OL Flips To Penn State From B1G Rival

STATE COLLEGE, PA - NOVEMBER 12: A general view during the game between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Nebraska Cornhuskers on November 12, 2011 at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

Coming into this season, Beaver Stadium was supposed to pose a challenge for Blake Zalar. After all, the freshman offensive lineman wasn’t initially heading to Penn State.

Zalar had plans to attend Rutgers as a preferred walk-on for this season. However, Penn State suddenly entered the picture around April in hopes of changing his mind.

Clearly, playing for the Nittany Lions is just too good of an offer to ignore for Zalar. The Pennsylvania native flipped his commitment from Rutgers to Penn State.

Instead of walking into Beaver Stadium as a member of the opposition, Happy Valley will be Zalar’s home.

This opportunity also allows him to play close to his hometown of Coal Township.

“Being from PA and having an opportunity to play for and represent your home state is a special opportunity that any boy growing up in Pennsylvania would take,” he said. “I did grow up following the program very closely, so when I got the opportunity it was a no-brainer.”

Penn State has a solid group of incoming talent for next season, which ranks as the No. 13 recruiting class according to 247Sports.

As for Zalar, he will serve as an interior lineman for the Nittany Lions. He’s hopeful that he can eventually earn a scholarship down the road.